Firmware Update 2018-10-09

[jakfish]

>> There apparently are slight differences in the files you get between these two...  <<

Excellent find!

Jake

[jakfish]

Upon reboot after flashing October firmware, users have noted that they must manually choose sim card 1 for calls. This bug continues after any restart.

I've looked at apps that manage sim cards, but they seem like overkill (e.g. make work contacts use sim 1). Any basic app available that will automatically choose sim 1 for everything and be done with it?

Jake

[Ifanafi]

My Gemini (T-Mobile Metro USA) also resets at every reboot / startup its SIM for "calls" to the empty second SIM slot that is automatically switched on.
I suspect that is a EU cell phone preference glitch. Maybe not.

Planet says they are aware of that issue and the next update ought to correct it presently (year's end).

BTW, other known bugs still alive or newly born since the latest firmware update are also under review.
Some like Bluetooth coms being interrupted by faulty do-not-disturb functionality and notifications are believed to be fixed in the OREO update Planet is striving to have available also by year's end.

So, we shall see....

Ifanafi

Upon reboot after flashing October firmware, users have noted that they must manually choose sim card 1 for calls. This bug continues after any restart.

I've looked at apps that manage sim cards, but they seem like overkill (e.g. make work contacts use sim 1). Any basic app available that will automatically choose sim 1 for everything and be done with it?

Jake

[gidds]

FWIW, I've had no issues with SIM cards, or with wifi — both work fine as they did before.

However, the upgrade replaced my custom /etc/hosts file.  Luckily, I have a backup, so was able to restore that once I spotted the problem.

[pakman]

FWIW, I've had no issues with SIM cards, or with wifi — both work fine as they did before.

However, the upgrade replaced my custom /etc/hosts file.  Luckily, I have a backup, so was able to restore that once I spotted the problem.

Hm, I've applied the update on my triple-boot x25 (following the instructions at http://support.planetcom.co.uk/index.php/A...d_Manual_Update. Wifi is fine, but it cannot see the SIM. The SIM works, I can call from it in Sailfish, but not in Android.

I have tried removing and re-inserrting the SIM, also wiping the cache from the recovery menu, but the SIM icon stayed grayed out with a line through it and everything in the settings menu relating to the SIM is deactivated.

Any ideas, anyone?

Edit: I cannot turn aeroplane mode off: the aeroplane icon in the pull-down status menu just blinks slowly if I tap it. I can turn both Wifi and Bluetooth on and off, and both work.

Under "SIM status" and "IEMI information", everything is either unknown or not available. However, I don't think that I have somehow lost the NVRAM. First, I can call from Sailfish. Second, I backed up the NVRAM partition according to http://support.planetcom.co.uk/index.php/L...NVRAM_partition and the file I got is identical to the one that I got from when I originally backed it up before the first time I reflashed.

[Dixit]

Right. I just restarted the Gemini and found indeed that it reverts to the non-existing second card for voice calls. Very annoying.

I had a few 'runs' of the Gemini where it succeeded to carry on on one battery charge for 3 or 4 days.
Since about 1,5 weeks it is back to its original "barely 2 days".

This did not happen immediately after the update (so the update is not at fault) and I did not change my use of the Gemini (as far as I know).

[gymbo]

Right. I just restarted the Gemini and found indeed that it reverts to the non-existing second card for voice calls. Very annoying.

I had a few 'runs' of the Gemini where it succeeded to carry on on one battery charge for 3 or 4 days.
Since about 1,5 weeks it is back to its original "barely 2 days".

This did not happen immediately after the update (so the update is not at fault) and I did not change my use of the Gemini (as far as I know).

I do believe that the SIM2-activation might be related to the eSIM Wallet app. If you just open the app it changes the calls to SIM2 (the eSIM). (WHY does it need to change the SIM if you just open the app??!?) So it might be activated on some level on a restart, and that might be why it changes to SIM2??? I just tried to open the app now, and on first open, it changed the SIM for calls. The next time it gave some crash-report, but still CLAIMED it changed the SIM for calls... (but it didn't...??). (I looked at the different settings in the app too, so that might have "triggered" the crash/crash-report somehow??)

But I would like to hear if somebody has got an office app (or any app that edits files...) to work properly with SD-card (unadopted!) after the upgrade. Like I said in an earlier post I have got it to work sporadically, but not reliably...

And I still get about 2 days use out of my Gemini on "normal" (for me!) use. It usually uses 1-2% of the battery per hour. So I don't see any change in regard to that.

[pakman]

Hm, I've applied the update on my triple-boot x25 (following the instructions at http://support.planetcom.co.uk/index.php/A...d_Manual_Update. Wifi is fine, but it cannot see the SIM. The SIM works, I can call from it in Sailfish, but not in Android.

I have tried going back to the June 2018 firmware, but the SIM still isn't recognised.   I'll have to take this up with Gemini next week.

[bloblo]

Just as an update to everyone with broken wifi on rooted android: you most likely have the wrong, regular non-root image installed as an upgrade to the rooted one (which as already mentioned above, is slightly different).

How to fix it:

Go to the gemini partition manager website ( http://support.planetcom.co.uk/partitionTool.html ), specify rooted android in all boxes as usual, then click download firmware image from there.
Unpack the folder you get, throw in your original scatter file you got when you first installed, then open it in the firmware flasher and choose "Download Only" with "userdata" unchecked (such that your configurations and apps will remain). Then press the flash button and reboot your gemini while attached over USB as usual for the flashing, and wait for it to finish. This worked for me and fixed the wifi.

Edit: added direct link to partition manager

[Kero]

Ah, I see. Those with partitioned Gemini (like me) should not use the Android firmware from Planet support page, but the firmware downloadable from page with partition tool. The first one is (or was at the time I downloaded it) lacking rooted boot image. Which somehow in combination with custom scatter file messed my wifi.  Meantime I solved my problem by fresh install of not rooted stock and rooting by myself (using TWRP and Magisk). Now it seem to work OK.

Yep, you got it!

I started out with that one, got spontaneous reboots right after booting.
Tried to kick Magisk off, then used non-rooted boot.img (from the generic download). Reboots all along the way, sometimes I had much more time to do things adn then when rebooting, it wouldn't stop rebooting anymore..

Spontaneous reboots now happen when I connect to the local wifi network.

Then I found this thread.
Reinstalled the rooted image from the partition tool download (fresh download, but same file anyway). No improvement.

Any ideas welcome.

Mailed Planet Computers, will keep you posted.

[Eldkatten]

Hello,

thanks for the hint, I didn't update yet because rooted image was mentioned nowhere.

But:

(...)Go to the gemini partition manager website(...)

A link would be much appreciated. Saw that kind of referrence in another post, too ("Go to page with ..."). I don't know what page you mean.

Thanks
Kind regards

P.S.: Ok, found it accidentally: http://support.planetcom.co.uk/partitionTool.html
P.S.: @bloblo: thank you for pointing out that method. I flashed the new rooted firmware now and it worked marvelously. I forgive you thus for not giving the actual link  

[Kero]

Mailed Planet Computers, will keep you posted.

Planets responded appropriately, but that dd not solve the problem.

I dug a bit through all the changes I made, and started undoing my habitual config changes.
When I revert "Enablw Wi-Fi verbose logging" (to off, aka disabled), the reboots cease. That was unexpected...